Mother Knows Best
by Priestess Mayumi
Summary: Izumi goes looking for her students to scold them for goofing off, only to find out that they've broken the one taboo that she tried to steer them away from...the one she herself broke years ago: human transmutation.


Mother Knows Best

Well, I'm excited. This is my _very first_ FMA fan fiction! Plus, I love Ed…and Al…and Izumi…and Winry…and Sig…okay I love most everyone in FMA (with the exception of Pride, Dante, Shou Tucker, and perhaps Kimbly).

Anyway, this was a cute little idea that came into my mind a while ago. "Episode 27: Teacher" is one of my most favorite episodes and I have it saved to my computer so that I can watch it again and again! Izumi and Sig rule. End of story. I'm so angry that "Conqueror of Shamballa" bumped Izumi off. No fair. At least I can watch her again in the new "Brotherhood" series, but that's a different story.

This will probably be a short fic…maybe 3-5 chapters, but I'm thinking about writing a much longer story with Izumi later on.

I don't own FMA…period. I'm not selling this…and I don't need to because I've got a huge stash of biological weapons on hand…which I will use on flamers JK ;)

Seriously, though, don't flame me…unless your name is Roy Mustang. And no, having the name "Roy Mustang" or any variation in your penname does not count. Please review…I'll give you a cookie!

Anywhoo…here we go!

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Chapter One:

Izumi was getting fed up with the whole thing, and trying her best not to lose her patience. She wiped her brow with the back of her hand. _Where could those idiot apprentices of mine have gone to?_

She and Sig had been chasing those ne'er-do-wells all over the country: first in Southern HQ, then in Central, and now they'd chased them all the way here to Rush Valley. She was determined that this was the _very last town_ that those two would run away to. She and Sig were going to find them this time.

She felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning around she saw Sig motion towards a nearby pub with a questioning look on his face. Izumi shrugged. It would be as good a place as any to try next.

She walked over to the door and opened it, then effectively slammed it against the wall…hard.

The whole pub turned to look at her. She admitted, she had to look pretty odd standing there. Finally someone spoke up, "Hey, what's your problem, lady?"

"Yeah dame, whadda think you're doing here anyway? This joint ain't the place for pretty little…" The smart-mouth froze when he saw Sig walk in right behind her with a menacing look on his face.

It also effectively shut everyone else in the joint up. Izumi turned around and smiled at Sig…a smile that seemed to say: t_his is why I drag you with me every place I go._

Stepping into the smoky light of the pub, Izumi spoke loudly. "Sorry to interrupt, but I am in need of some assistance. I'm looking for two pipsqueak boys. One's quiet and brown-haired and the other is blonde and never shuts up. The blonde one is a State Alchemist and it wouldn't surprise me if they've been doing some alchemy around here."

The skinny turnip-faced guy that had mocked her earlier, and also looked badly beaten up, spoke up. "Well, haven't seen a little brown-haired kid…but I _definitely_ have seen the little blonde midget. And he _was_ using alchemy…to cheat us out of our money!" The big guy next to him, also covered in bruises and lumps, nodded.

Izumi rolled her eyes. That sounded like Ed all right. "Do you know where I can find him?"

The place was silent for a moment before another of the pub's patrons pointed behind her and said, "That guy! He was with the shrimp kid earlier!"

Izumi turned around. Behind Sig was a character unlike any she had seen before. She knew that Rush Valley was big on automail…but this guy seemed to have taken it a bit far. He was six feet tall and covered in armor. He looked pretty harmless to her.

Izumi put on a smile and walked towards "armor man". "Hello," she said softly. "Is that true? You know where this blonde alchemist kid is staying?"

Due to the armor, she couldn't gage the man's emotions, but he paused before he answered, "Yes, ma'm".

Izumi was taken aback by how young his voice sounded, but perhaps he was just a bit shy, so she smiled a little brighter. "Could you possibly take us there?"

There was an uneasy pause again, but the answer came, "Yes, ma'm. I can take you there right away."

"Perfect," smiled Izumi.

She and Sig followed the armored man down the street. It was a quiet night. _Not for long._

They finally came to the house. The man went up to the door and Sig followed close behind, signaling to Izumi to wait where she was.

"I'll go in first," he said, "to make sure it's not a trap."

Izumi smiled at her husband's thoughtfulness. "That's not very fair! You know that I love busting traps!" She thought she saw a smile tug at the corner of Sig's mouth. She changed her mind about going in, though. "Actually, you go ahead. I'm going to take…a different way in."

Only Sig could have possibly understood what she meant by that. He nodded and followed the man through the door while she went around the back, behind the building's window.

_If Ed is staying here…then this is exactly where he'll come._

She pressed her ear to the building. She could hear muffled voices inside and then footsteps to the window. Sighing, she knew that they had found her stupid apprentices at last.

The window opened, and she saw a tuft of blond hair peak out. _Ed._ Well, she treated him to her specialty…a foot in his face. She heard him fall back and skid along the floor.

"And just _where_ do you think you're going, Ed?" She sighed as she hoisted herself through the window. "You've always been so predictable." Coming through the window, she saw Ed, the same petrified look on his face as the one he'd had nearly five years ago after losing during a sparring lesson. At his side was a young blonde-haired girl that she faintly recognized as the child who'd come to see Ed off the day she'd taken him and Al to Dublith.

"Um…" sputtered Ed, "hello teacher. What are _you_ doing here?" Ed gulped.

"That's your _teacher?" _the young girl said incredulously. Obviously, the girl had been too young back then to remember her now. "But that means that she's…"

"An alchemist," Izumi barely heard Ed whispering, "taught us everything we know."

_That's right, kid, _she thought. _And don't ever forget it._ Izumi looked around the room for Al. She didn't see him anywhere. Knowing sensitive Al, he'd be hiding somewhere under a mountain of furniture. When she decided she was tired of looking for the kid, she shouted, "WHERE is ALPHONSE?" She hoped that maybe her harsh tone would drag the kid out.

"Ma'm!" Izumi turned around. It was "armor man" who had spoken. He was standing at attention. He most likely needed to go somewhere, and she was rudely keeping him here.

Smiling again, she spoke softly and walked towards him, hand resting on her neck. "Oh, I'm sorry. But I want to thank you so much for escorting us here. Do you know where I can find Alphonse?"

The man looked dumbstruck for a moment before putting a hand aside of his face and said nervously, so quiet that she could barely hear, "Well…um…I'm Alphonse."

Not understanding, she kept going, "Yes, of course you are. Now as I was saying…" It was then that his words sunk in. Without moving her head, she moved her eyes up to look at the speaker. He did indeed have a childish presence about him, and it would explain his young voice. Al's face started to gather sweat, and he started to edge away from her as quickly as he could.

That was Al, and she wasn't going to let him get away. Furious, she reached out and grabbed his arm, throwing him over her shoulder and onto the ground. She was amazed at how light he was. It almost felt as though the armor was moving by…

No. She couldn't think about that right now. She logged in and stowed that thought away in her mind for future pondering. Right now, she needed to get through to her moronic students.

"**So you're hiding in disguises now? Don't worry, I've had plenty of stories each me about my idiot apprentices breaking away from everything I've taught them to become the scum of the military. Isn't that right?**"

Al was groveling on the ground, and Ed was hiding behind the young girl. That angered her. She'd taught him better than that…and now _this_ was a manifestation of all her hard work? What cowardice.

"You two! On the couch! Now!"

She'd never seen her two students move that fast…not even during their training. She sighed. Had she gone soft on them during their training? She turned around and motioned to Sig. He nodded at her and moved toward the two boys. They were coming back to Dublith the easy way or the hard way. If Ed's pathetic attempt to escape out the window was anything to go by, it was going to be the hard way. Sig pulled out a thick rope they had brought along and started to tie it around Ed and Al.

"Hey!" yelled Ed. "What do you think you're doing?" Ed started to struggle. Izumi didn't need him trying to escape by using force…or alchemy, which was simply unfair, because Sig couldn't fight back in a battle of alchemy. Someone needed to even things out.

"**Edward Elric! If you or your brother moves another muscle, then I will **_**personally**_** make you wish that you had never been born!"**

Ed's face immediately paled and he froze in his place. Izumi smirked to herself. This was the second time in one night that people had effectively shut up in her presence. Sig finished tying the two brothers together, slung them over his shoulder like a slab of meat, and stood up to face Izumi.

"Well," said Izumi, "if we're going to catch the train, we had better hurry." Sig nodded, and carried the boys out the door. Izumi turned around to look at the young woman. The blonde girl looked at her with a mixture of awe and fear. The look on Izumi's face softened as she realized that she had probably scared the young woman. Facing the girl, she smiled faintly and said, "I'm Izumi Curtis. You must be the young friend that Ed and Al grew up with".

The girl nodded. "I'm Winry Rockbell."

Izumi's smile grew at the young girl's innocence. "Well, Miss Winry, are you coming with us, or aren't you?"


End file.
